Do Life 5k in Omaha

Yesterday morning I hit the road at 6 am for Omaha and arrived just before 9. Upon my arrival, I had the pleasure of meeting Ben Davis, the inspiration for this blog and my journey. Ben is such a cool guy in person. He's just like the guy we see and read everyday on his website, only a bit more tired from this cross country tour he and his dad are making along with the Ironman training they are both doing at the same time. But you can tell that he feeds off of all of the positive energy from everyone that attends (well over 60 people in Omaha) as much as we are inspired and energized by him and what he's doing.

It was also a pleasure meeting his dad, John. He's a really cool guy and someone you could listen to for hours.

John Davis aka "Pa", me and Ben Davis.

It was a rather warm morning by the time 10:15 rolled around when we started the 5k. I didn't run the whole thing but at least ran 2 miles of it. I met some really cool people from Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, each one with their own story and in various stages of their own journey.

I was even interviewed by NTV out of Kearney.



Afterwards we went to Panera, Ben's favorite place to eat. Everyone that was able to make it had a great time. I know I did. And I can't wait for the next time we can meet. Thank you, Ben and John.

Link:
Do Life: Omaha Facebook Album
Do Life Tour
Help them out if you can

A chance to meet Ben Davis

It's a been a while since my last post. There's hasn't been a lot of news in my world. The heat has put the kibosh on riding my bicycle to work so I've been pretty bummed about that.

I have been maintaining my weight between 225 and 230 pounds. I'm pretty pleased with that.

A few nights ago I decided to start a strength program. I downloaded an app called 100 Pushups. I'm really weak in my upper body and I have some loose skin around my midsection. I figured doing this would be a great as well as inexpensive way to build muscle and tighten things a bit.

This coming Saturday, I'm driving to Omaha to take part in the Do Life Official Unofficial 5k Tour. Ben Davis of BenDoesLife.com, his dad and his brother are traveling cross country and they along with anyone who shows up are running/walking/jogging - you name it - a 5k. This Wednesday, they will be in Kansas City. There is absolutely no cost or any sort of registration with this 5k. You just show up, get inspired, inspire others and have fun.

My family is one of the major reasons why I started this journey but it was Ben and his 120-pound journey YouTube video that lit the fire in me. I saw a lot of myself in him. Seeing his before photos I thought that was me. Maybe it was the facial hair, I don't know, but seeing his transformation, I told myself, I can do that. And I did it - minus the 10k, half marathon, marathon and Iron Man races.

Hopefully I can meet Ben and tell him thanks for both his inspiration (and giving me the ok to call this site ShawnDoesLife.com).  If I can manage to get a picture with him, I'll be sure to post it.

Today's lunch

Here's part of what I had for lunch today:

It's The World's Best Veggie Burger from Local Burger in Lawrence, Kansas. I've known about these for quite a long time but it was only last week that I finally had one. I'm kicking myself for not having one sooner. If you toast it or cook it in a skillet with a little oil, their veggie burger gets a really nice crust and has a great crunch when you bite into it. Of the 3 I've eaten so far, I've eaten them plain. I like them on their own.
I'm not compensated for my opinions on things like this. I just thought it's worth writing about so people can read about the types of things I eat that has helped me lose over 100 pounds.

How I roll

So for the past 2 or 3 weeks off and on and everyday this week, I've been riding my bike to work. Since Memorial Day when a friend asked me to go for a ride, I've become hooked on riding as much as I can. The only thing that has stopped me from riding so far has been the weather. A few times it's been raining and a few times, it's been just too hot that I'd be sweating too much at work. And it's not the heat in the mornings as much as it is when I ride back to work after lunch.

Here's how I roll:

I've got my XL-sized helmet, sunglasses with a rearview mirror attached on the left side, my cinch sport bag containing all of the stuff I'd normally carry in my pockets, red bicycle gloves so that it's easier for drivers to see when I'm signaling and then a couple head or hair bands that belong to my wife that keep my pants from getting dirty from the chain and the bike itself. It's really quite a sight.

I love, love, love riding and now I have a new goal of doing the BAK. My dad had tried to get me to take part in it for years but I never felt like doing it. But now it's something I really want to do. Unfortunately my current ride won't work very well on long rides so my dream bicycle is the Surly Long Haul Trucker.

I can't wait to get back on and ride. Riding is so liberating and makes me feel young while I'm smiling along the way.

Get Fit Wamego - Final Screening

Check out these numbers from my final screening this morning.

Almost everything is in the healthy range. Still need to work on HDL and BMI but at least those numbers changed in the directions they needed to. Look at my trigylcerides from this morning compared to April 2010. That's a huge difference. And I've lost 23 pounds in just over 2 1/2 months.

I'm pretty excited an proud of this. There's still quite a bit I can do to be even healthier but what I'm doing now is working.

I hope to see more of you take part in Get Fit Wamego next year. It's a great program.

Thank you everyone for all of your support on my journey. Not only have I changed physically but it's been huge boost mentally as well with all of your well wishes and motivation.

I can wear white

And I don't look terrible. My wife went on a little shopping spree on my behalf. Thanks, babe.

Check this one out too.

I'm also down to wearing size 38 pants. Crazy!

Swimming in my jeans

Take a look at me in my old pair of jeans. I used to wear them all of the time because they were comfortable and loose fitting. I didn't realize how big they were until I put them on a few days ago. The jeans themselves are really heavy.

I've been able to get rid of so much stuff in my closet and drawers. Part of me is worried about getting rid of it because what if I gain the weight back but I'm only looking forward and I know what I need to do to keep having success on this journey. And these pictures are a good reminder of that.

Thinned out the closet some more

Got rid of more shirts, some jeans, dress pants and cargo shorts. Found one pair that was size 48. Today, size 40 is a little loose. I also found a shirt that I wore only once for a wedding almost 2 years ago. It was a light cream color and I hated wearing it because white is not the most flattering color for a large person. 

Here's the before picture:

And the after:

I'll have another post of my old pair of jeans that I used to wear all of the time.

Today's 5k in Marysville

Ran in the Marysville Rib Run this morning. Felt a whole heck of a lot better today than I did running my last 5k. I didn't have any cramping or tightening up this time around. I wasn't sure how I would do today because again, I didn't run at all since then either. I have started riding my bike to work in the last week. I'll write more about that in another post soon.

My time today was 29:00, unofficially. 9 seconds slower than my fastest time. The route was a challenging one but I still enjoyed it a lot. It was the first year for this particular race and going on at the same time was a BBQ competition. Didn't stick around long enough for that though.

I did medal and placed 3rd in my age group. I was pretty surprised by that. I'm pretty sure there were more than 3 guys in my age group. For as much as I enjoy running in races, I should run a whole lot more in between them so that I can do even better.

Race playlist:

Barbastella - Batman Begins soundtrack
The Birth and Death of the Day - Explosions in the Sky
A-Punk - Vampire Weekend
Shake It - Metro Station
Kids - MGMT
Hey Little World - The Hives
Born This Way - Lady Gaga
Glosoli - Sigur Ros

Diet vs Diet

People have been asking me if I'm still dieting or on a diet. The definition of diet that I've been using is different than what everyone is asking me.

The most well-known definition of diet is eating food to lose or control weight as well as nutrient intake.

My definition of diet is the sum of the food consumed or the food I eat on a daily basis.

The way I see it and what I strive to do can be found on the cover of Michael Pollan's book, In Defense of Food:



Look at the ribbon on that head of lettuce: "Eat Food. Not Too Much. Mostly Plants." It's that simple. Now I don't always succeed at that but I'm at least aware of it at all times. Having fruits and vegetables be the focal point on my plate and the meat (especially red meat) be the side item has helped a lot. It's very "un-American." I've run into people on my journey who aren't willing to make that type of change and it's easy to see where it's getting them.

It's not like you have to give up all of the bad stuff. When it comes to red meat, I still eat it but not as often and I enjoy it more. I'm a huge fan of hamburgers, both homemade and at restaurants. Whereas I would have 2 homemade burgers with cheese, mayo, ketchup, etc., now I have 2 burgers in the course of a month, probably more like 2 or 3 and it would consist of mustard and maybe pickle.

If it's steak, I would limit myself to 4 or 5 oz. and not a typical dinner-sized portion.

I've made drastic changes in what I eat and how much. I'm not perfect but I'm more aware of what I'm doing and not just mindlessly eating.

Also, check out that book referenced above as well as his more well-known book The Omnivore's Dilemma. After that, pick up Food Rules.

8 months later

When I started this blog, my first post included a "topless" photo of myself. It was the 335+ pound version of me. The photo would be the initial motivation to start my weight loss journey. This morning I took another picture of myself after being on hiatus for a couple of months.

8 months and 100 pounds later:

The guy on the left wore XXXL shirts. The guy on the right has been wearing a few XL shirts lately.

The guy on the left was wearing size 46 in the waist. The guy on the right is wearing size 40.

The guy on the left was out of breath after climbing a flight of stairs. The guy on the right has another 5k race on June 4th.

The guy on the left was sick and tired of being sick and tired. The guy on the right is the result of that.

The guy on the left wanted to be around for a long time for his family. The guy on the right is going to be around for a long time for his family.

So I've lost more than 100 pounds

And here's the proof:

I was totally taken aback when I saw that number show up on the scale Friday morning. I thought I'd be close to 236, maybe 235.5 if I was lucky but definitely not less than 235. It feels really, really good. I never thought I'd lose 50 pounds. I've lost over 100 freaking pounds.

Now the next stage in my journey begins and that's maintaining my weight. I know I never want to go back to where I was. There's a whole lot that the thinner me is looking forward to doing. That includes spending as much time at the swimming pool as I can with Luke this summer. It also includes looking good in a tux for my brother's wedding. I'm not going to be the fat brother anymore.

Just take a look at the picture below (from December 2009):

There are too many of those and it's time for new ones.

Another perk is that I'm no longer obese according to my BMI. Now I'm just overweight. :)

Yet another before and after photo

I was going through my closet the other day and now have a dozen fewer shirts to wear as they are way too big, all of them XXXL or XXXLT. Also in my closet was a suit that I've worn maybe 4 or 5 times over the last 6 years or so. I hated wearing it because it was too tight and I would have to wear a white shirt and I looked huge in white.

I can remember trying to suck my gut in when it came time for formal pictures wearing that. It was tough buttoning the jacket comfortably.

I put it on and now it just hangs on me. The pants are loose and so is the jacket around my midsection. The first picture is from my sister-in-law's wedding in 2007 and the other picture is from last week. Enjoy!

I'm less than 2 pounds away from losing 100 pounds since starting this website. I haven't taken a picture lately like I did every month but I will once I hit the century mark.

What a difference a year can make...again

This past weekend I attended the Kansas Sampler Festival. It's an amazing yearly event. I attended last year as well.

Here's what I looked like then and what I looked like this year:

XXXL on the left. XL on the right.

I was embarrassed looking at the pictures of the XXXL version of me. The huge shirt just wasn't helping one bit and I looked terrible. Now I'm wearing an XL and I think I look good wearing it. I'm gaining more confidence in what I wear. It's an awesome feeling.

Another before and after photo

I have another before and after photo to share.

The left side is September 18th, 2010 and the right side is April 30th, 2011.

The old me couldn't run the entire 5k. The new me has run two 5k races in 2 weeks.

The old me was testing the limits of XXL shirts. The new me is swimming in them now.

The old me had a goatee to "hide" my fat face. The new me has one because it looks good (I'm told).

The old me had a lot to be happy about. The new me couldn't be happier.

Yesterday's 5k

Lots of highs and a few lows from yesterday's 5k in Topeka. My hope was that I would improve my time but I was 1 second slower than my last 5k. My time was 28:52 yesterday. The race started at 3 pm so that was a little bit of an adjustment but I don't think it had any effect on how I ran. I strained my right calf in the first half of the race and it's still sore today. It's a little bit better right now. Also, my gut started aching around the same time and I wasn't sure if I was going to throw up or what. It lasted the rest of the race and about 10 or 15 minutes after.
I had a decent breakfast, my usual oatmeal with flaxseed meal and also some strawberry greek yogurt. Lunch was lighter with just some vegetables. Looking back, I didn't drink near enough water both in the days before the race as well as yesterday morning and leading up to the race. Maybe a sports drink would have helped some too.
After the race, I went to a sports bar and "celebrated" by ordering whatever I wanted. I overdid it on what I ate and my wife told me she saw the old me. I felt that way too. I inhaled my food and had a lot of it. I had a cheeseburger, onion rings and a beer. I can't forget the spinach and artichoke stuffed mushrooms before my meal either. I also helped my wife finish her french fries. I was definitely the old Shawn for one meal. None of what I ate gave me the pleasure or satisfaction that losing 95 pounds or being a healthier person has. It was good to get that out of my system to remind me that I'm not missing anything.
On the bright side of things, I FINISHED ANOTHER 5K. I didn't stop running once as much as I felt like it and I still finished strong and with a decent time. I've come a long, long way from eating like a pig to where I am today.
If I'm going to keep this up, I really need to run and exercise on a more regular basis. I am looking forward to my next 5k on June 4th.

Here's a picture of me near the finish line from yesterday's race taken by SeeKCRun.com

Running another 5k race this weekend

So I'm registered for another 5k race this weekend in Topeka. It's the Law Day 5k. If you watch WIBW you've seen it advertised on there as they are a sponsor. Race time is 3 pm on Saturday.

I'm getting closer and closer to losing 100 pounds since starting this journey. Hopefully that will happen in the next week or two.

Also, I've been working on a playlist when I run. Here's the playlist from my last race.

Barbastella - Batman Begins soundtrack (I use this as a warmup before the race, walk around, lineup before the start)
The Birth and Death of the Day - Explosions in the Sky
A-Punk - Vampire Weekend
Shake It - Metro Station
Kids - MGMT
Hey Little World - The Hives
Born This Way - Lady Gaga (skipped this song as it was getting close to the end of the race and I really wanted to hear the next one)
List of Demands - Saul Williams
Sunshine (Adagio in D Minor) - Sunshine soundtrack

I'm always open to suggestions. If you have anything similar to what I have above or think I might like, please let me know. With rare exception, I don't know anything really current but that doesn't mean I'm against it.

Correction - My 5k time was even better

So the official results came out yesterday and my 5k time was 28:51 and not 29:12 like I thought. I'm pretty stoked by that. Also, I was about 30 seconds from placing 3rd. So close!

I signed up for another 5k on April 30th in Topeka. My goal for that race is to see if I can beat 28:51. The course is near Washburn University and the neighborhood to the west so my guess is that the course will be a little similar to the one I just ran as far as the inclines and declines. We shall see.

Today's 5k - 90 pounds lighter - 11 minutes faster

Ran my 2nd 5k this morning and my 4th race overall since starting my journey. I was worried that I wouldn't do very well because I haven't been running much since last month's 2-mile race. My 2 major goals for this race were running the entire race and finishing with a better time than my first 5k back in September of last year. I knew that if I ran the whole race then there was no doubt my time would be faster.

Well I definitely accomplished both goals. I finished this morning in a time of 29:12. That's over 11 minutes faster than my previous 5k. I even ran a faster pace than my 2-mile race last month.

A quick comparison:
9/18/10 - 335+ pounds - 40:33
4/16/11 - 245 pounds - 29:12

I feel like I pushed myself but I was also hurting a bit from not running very much over the past month. I didn't finish in the top 3 of my age group or win any door prizes but it wasn't why I ran. It was for a great cause and for my own health. I ran well and ran the whole race. I'm ecstatic with my time and I'm looking forward to my next race.

Look at me now

My wife gave me a new shirt and pair of shorts for my birthday. Check it out.

Compare that to August of last year in the picture below. Yikes!